Interview with Eugene Minogue
The Rise of Parkour/Freerunning
I recently caught up with Eugene Minogue to get his take on the rise of Parkour/Freerunning, following its recognition as a sport. Eugene Minogue is currently CEO at Parkour UK, the national governing body (NGB) for Parkour/Freerunning within the UK. In addition, he is also the Sports Development Manager at the City of Westminster and was the project co-ordinator of the seminal documentary Jump Westminister.
Parkour/Freerunning has recently been recognised as a sport in the UK, how does this impact the sport’s growth and accessibility?
Parkour/Freerunning is already a relatively global sport in terms of participation, this is heavily driven by content sharing and distribution online. Recognition as a sport adds even more of a boost and a greater sense of ‘social norming’ in the UK to a sport that is access friendly as it can be carried out whenever and wherever, without needing to meticulously manage your busy diaries, buy special equipment, join a club, or go through the process of booking a pitch or court- removing many of the obstacles that hinder engagement in regular sports or physical activity. With the backing that Parkour/Freerunning now has from the UK sports councils and the government, this will open up greater awareness and contribute towards greater participation.
What does your role as Chief Executive at Parkour UK entail?
My role as Chief Executive involves various elements including leading the organisational culture, to increasing participation within the sport, working with national partners, awarding bodies, schools, colleges, universities, police constabularies and local authorities — making the sport as beneficial and accessible as possible across the UK.
Accessibility must be an area you focus on when it comes to growing the sport of Parkour/Freerunning. How important is it having Parkour/Freerunning based gyms and dedicated locations in contributing towards increases in the adoption of the sport?
just go down to your nearest parkour park — they are built in such a way that you can just join in. The vast majority of parkour can be done by the layperson, you’ve just got to have a pair of trainers and the courage to be able to move and interpret your environment.The restriction on public and open spaces has had a direct impact on physical activity levels — This is where Parkour/Freerunning comes into its own.
How has Parkour/Freerunning progressed since hitting the UK?
Parkour/Freerunning is in the vast majority of primary and secondary schools up and down the country, have been formally recognised as a sport with our own governing body, and have built a workforce of over 600 qualified coaches in the space of just over 10 years. This is unprecedented.
Although not being heavily commercialised such as a sport like Football, there are some parallels between the two sports regarding accessibility. Parkour/Freerunning has previously been incorporated into a range of films and television shows. What are your thoughts on Parkour/Freerunning becoming a more commercial sport, with brands and entities attaching themselves to it?
The vast majority of Parkour/Freerunning can be done by the lay person, you’ve just got to have a pair of trainers and the courage to be able to move and interpret your environment. This accessibility and simplicity will likely become more of an attractive asset for brands to eventually latch onto.
Thinking big, will Parkour/Freerunning become a ‘mainstream’ sport one day?
If you look at any child under the age of eight, they will inherently move. Facilitating that and getting them to understand and discover their place in the world through movement is essentially what Parkour/Freerunning does. As this perspective and movement continues to resonate around the world, it is possible that Parkour/Freerunning could become a ‘aminstream’ sport in the way that Football, Rugby and Tennis are.
If Parkour/Freerunning was a person, what type of person would it be?
As Parkour/Freerunning is much more than a sport. It is art, it is play, it is discipline. It would be a well rounded and open person in touch with the environment around them. In short it would be everyone!
In closing, do you see Parkour/Freerunning continuing to grow as a sport?
I believe so. Parkour/Freerunning is a sport that both young children, adults, families, young and old can participate in together. Young children have the willingness to move freely, which is something adults can also do when tapping into their inner child — reminding themselves that they have an obligation to play! Parkour/Freerunning doesn’t cause any damage. We actually appreciate the environment around us because that is our playground. You don’t need a place to go to, you only need a space, a pair of trainers and your imagination. GO #GiveParkourAGo!!
After speaking with Eugene, it will be interesting to see how Parkour/Freerunning, which is already pretty global in terms of participation and content created by Parkour/Freerunning athletes around the world via various social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat; will continue to grow and evolve as a sport. I’m curious about how Parkour/Freerunning communities around the world will continue to connect with and assist each other in growing the sport via their respective locations.
Parkour/Freerunning does seem like the perfect sport for sponsors/commercial partners to attach themselves to as it is visually and culturally easy to digest with your experiences being your greatest coach, the movements performed are very artistic and fluid as well as the sport being very accessible- For me that’s a great avenue for storytelling based brands to explore and tap into. With it’s values representing openness, connectivity and an awareness of what is around you.
